High-voltage electrical storage devices, such as high-voltage traction batteries, are used in electric, hybrid electric, and fuel cell vehicles. A high-voltage electrical circuit formed by the electrical storage device and a powertrain system connected to the storage device should be electrically isolated from the vehicle and the vehicle occupants at all times.
Traction batteries in today's electric and hybrid electric vehicles typically operate at voltages in excess of conventional accessory batteries. As such, service personnel require convenient and reliable techniques for opening the traction battery circuit and/or replacing fuses and other system components.
Currently known methods for opening a high-voltage electrical storage device and accessing the fuse tend to be cumbersome because they require multiple steps and components to remove the fuse. Therefore, there is a desire for a device that can reliably and expediently open the high-voltage circuit and allow replacement of a spent fuse in the high voltage circuit.